Mary Pappas, RN, speaks out in support of the paid sick days bill, flanked by WFP Co-Chair Bob Master and Councilmember Gale Brewer, the bill's lead sponsor.
Mary Pappas, RN, the St. Francis Preparatory school nurse who detected the first cases of H1N1 (Swine Flu) in New York City last spring, joined our campaign to pass a citywide paid sick days bill today as schools across New York get ready to re-open.
“As any school nurse will tell you, one of the best defenses against contagious disease in our schools is making sure sick kids stay home where they won’t infect their classmates,” said Pappas. ”But for working parents without paid sick days, keeping their kids at home is not always possible.”
Local public health officials and even President Obama have repeatedly urged those with flu-like symptoms to stay home from work and school. But more than one million New Yorkers, including 39% of public school parents have no paid sick days where they work, according to a survey conducted by the Community Service Society.
Joining Pappas were parent leaders and public health experts, who made a simple case for the paid sick days bill. Patrick Sullivan, Manhattan Member of the Department of Education’s Panel for Educational Policy and a public school parent said, “Our plan to protect students from pandemic flu and keep the schools open hinges on parents keeping their kids at home if they are sick. But for the thousands of public school parents who have no paid sick days where they work, staying home to take care of a sick child might not be an option. This bill will help stop the spread of swine flu in the schools, and the City Council and the Mayor need to act quickly to keep our students safe.”
Dr. Victor Sidel, a renowned public health expert at Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Cornell’s Weill Medical College, and past president of both the Public Health Association of New York City and the American Public Health Association said, “Making sure that all New Yorkers can take time off, stay home, and get better is one of the easiest, and most effective things we can do to fight Swine Flu. It’s good for patients, good for working families, and absolutely critical for the city’s public health. The City Council should not waste another day.”
If you haven’t already, join over 1500 other New Yorkers and sign the WFP’s petition in support of the paid sick days bill!
